How Old Do You Have to Be to Use ChatGPT?

Last updated: October 2026

You have to be at least 13 years old to use ChatGPT, or older if your country sets a higher minimum, and anyone under 18 needs a parent or legal guardian's permission. That is OpenAI's own rule. Google's Gemini and Microsoft Copilot also start at 13 for a personal account. Claude is the exception among the big four: Anthropic requires every user to be at least 18.

I teach coding to kids aged 8 to 16, and this is one of the questions parents ask me most about AI. Below are the exact rules from each company's own pages, checked on 28 September 2026. After that, I explain how I handle AI coding tools with my teenage students, which is a separate question from what the rules say.

Key Takeaways

• ChatGPT: 13 or over, or your country's minimum age if that is higher. Anyone under 18 needs a parent or legal guardian's permission.
• Gemini: 13 or over (or the applicable age in your country) on a personal or school Google account. Younger children can use it only through a supervised account that a parent switches on in Family Link, and not in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK.
• Microsoft Copilot: at least 13, and higher in some countries or regions.
• Claude, including Claude Code on a Claude subscription: 18 or over. Anthropic's terms contain no parental-permission exception.
• Rules change and vary by country. Read the current page for the exact tool before your child signs up.

What exactly do OpenAI's rules say?

OpenAI's Terms of Use put it in two sentences: "You must be at least 13 years old or the minimum age required in your country to consent to use the Services. If you are under 18 you must have your parent or legal guardian's permission to use the Services."

Its help centre article Is ChatGPT safe for all ages? says the same thing in plainer words. ChatGPT "is not meant for children under 13," and OpenAI requires "that children ages 13 to 18 obtain parental consent before using ChatGPT."

The same article has a line that teachers of younger children should notice. If ChatGPT is used in an education setting with children under 13, "the actual interaction with ChatGPT must be conducted by an adult." In other words, a teacher can use it in front of a class of 10-year-olds, but the children should not be typing into it themselves.

So for a 13 to 17-year-old, the answer is yes, with your permission. For a child of 12 or younger, the answer is no: ChatGPT is not meant for them.

There is one more thing parents should know. OpenAI now switches on a teen version by itself. Its ChatGPT for Teens help page says that if "account-provided age information, verified age, or age prediction indicates you are under 18, ChatGPT automatically enables ChatGPT for Teens," which adds extra protections. Parents can optionally link their own account through parental controls to manage settings such as quiet hours.

What those controls do not do surprises most parents I talk to. In OpenAI's words: "Parental controls do not let a parent or guardian read or monitor the teen's conversations."

What are the age rules for Claude, Gemini and Copilot?

Here is each company's rule in one place, taken from its own pages on 28 September 2026.

Tool	Minimum age	Parental consent rule	Source
ChatGPT (OpenAI)	13, or the minimum age required in your country	Under 18 needs a parent or legal guardian's permission	OpenAI Terms of Use
Claude (Anthropic)	18, or the minimum age to consent in your location if that is higher	No parental-consent exception. Every user must be 18 or over	Anthropic Consumer Terms
Gemini (Google)	13, or the applicable age in your country, on a personal or school account. 18 on a work account	None stated for 13 and over. Under that age, a parent must turn access on in Family Link for a supervised account (not offered in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK)	Gemini Apps Help, Family Link guide
Microsoft Copilot	13, higher in some countries or regions	Below the age of majority where you live, a parent or legal guardian agrees to Microsoft's terms on your behalf	Microsoft Support, Services Agreement

Claude. Anthropic's consumer terms say: "You must be at least 18 years old or the minimum age required to consent to use the Services in your location, whichever is higher." Its help centre is blunter: "We require all users to be at least 18 years old to create and use a Claude account" (Claude Help Center). That covers Claude Code when it runs on a Claude subscription, because Anthropic describes its Pro and Max plans as giving access to Claude and Claude Code "with one unified subscription" (Claude Help Center). Claude is 18+, and parental permission does not appear anywhere in that rule.

Gemini. Google's help page says: "You must be 13 (or the applicable age in your country) or over to use Gemini with a personal or school Google Account and 18 or over to use Gemini with a work account." Younger children go through Family Link. Google's page for parents, Guide your child's Gemini Apps experience, says "A parent must enable access before their child under 13 (or the applicable age in your country) can use Gemini Apps with a supervised account," and also that "Gemini Apps are not available for supervised accounts in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom."

Microsoft Copilot. Microsoft's page for young people says: "You must be at least 13 years old to use Copilot, and in some countries or regions, the minimum age may be higher depending on regional requirements." Microsoft's Copilot terms make Copilot a service under the Microsoft Services Agreement, and that agreement says anyone who has not reached the age of majority where they live needs a parent or legal guardian who "agrees to be bound by these Terms on your behalf." The same young people page says parents can use Microsoft Family Safety to block Copilot or limit when it can be used.

How do my teenage students use AI coding tools?

This is where the rules meet my own teaching, so I want to be precise.

The AI coding agent I teach with most runs on a Claude subscription, and Claude is 18+. The students I use it with are teenagers. Here is exactly how I handle that with families.

The subscription belongs to the parent, and the parent is part of the decision to use the tool at all. The teen then works on it with the parent's knowledge, and in lessons I am there too. It is the advice I gave when I wrote about giving an 11-year-old a Claude Code subscription: you own the account, not your child, and it belongs on a shared family computer with you nearby, at least at first.

Two things about that setup need saying plainly.

First, it is my practice with families, not a reading of anyone's terms. A parent owning the subscription does not change what Anthropic's terms allow, and I would not tell you it does. The official rules are the rules.

Second, the terms cover more than age. They also say who may use an account. Read the current terms for any tool before you decide what your family is comfortable with, and make that decision yourself, with your child, rather than letting a tutor or a friend's parent make it for you.

Whether a child is ready for one of these tools at all is a different question again. I have covered it in when kids should start using AI coding tools. That post is about foundations and readiness. This one is about the rules.

What the tool never replaces is the person sitting next to the teenager. Antonio, whose son has been exploring AI and coding with me, summed up what parents are actually paying for as "valuable information, clear explanations, engaging delivery, and helpful practice activities." None of that comes from a subscription.

What should you check before your child signs up?

Start with the terms page for that exact tool, read on the day you decide. These rules move. OpenAI's current terms took effect on January 1, 2026, and Microsoft's current Copilot terms took effect on August 18, 2026. A screenshot a friend sent you last year may be out of date.

Then check your country. ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot all use 13 as the floor but defer to a higher local age where one applies, and Claude's 18 can also be higher depending on where you live. If you are in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK, the Gemini route for under-13s does not exist at all.

Then check whose account it is. The age rule applies to the person using the service. If your teen has their own ChatGPT account, your permission is part of OpenAI's rule, not an optional extra.

Finally, talk to your child about what they already use, because it is probably more than you think. Pew Research Center's survey of US teens aged 13 to 17 found that just over half had used chatbots for help with schoolwork, and that "while about half of parents say their teen uses chatbots, higher shares of teens themselves (64%) report using them."

My own rule for schoolwork is short: AI explains concepts, kids produce answers. I set out the full framework, including the explain-it-back test, in what I tell parents about kids using AI for homework.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can a 12-year-old use ChatGPT? Not under OpenAI's rules. OpenAI says ChatGPT "is not meant for children under 13." If a teacher uses it with younger children in a classroom, OpenAI says the adult has to be the one interacting with it.

Can my teenager use Claude if I give permission? No. Anthropic requires every user to be at least 18, and its terms have no parental-consent exception. That includes Claude Code when it runs on a Claude Pro or Max subscription.

Can I read my teenager's ChatGPT conversations? Not through parental controls. OpenAI says they "do not let a parent or guardian read or monitor the teen's conversations." You can link accounts to manage settings such as quiet hours. The simplest way to know what your child asks an AI is to be in the room, especially at the start.

Can a child under 13 use Gemini? Only through a supervised Google account, and only after a parent turns Gemini on in Family Link. Google says this is not available for supervised accounts in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK, and that access for supervised accounts is being released gradually.

Is the minimum age the same in every country? No. ChatGPT, Gemini and Copilot set 13 as the floor but defer to a higher age where local rules require one. Claude's minimum is 18, or higher if your location requires it.

Is ChatGPT safe for kids who meet the age rule? OpenAI itself says: "We advise caution with exposure to kids, even those who meet our age requirements." Meeting the age rule means your child is allowed to use it. It does not mean they should use it unsupervised from day one.

Not sure which AI tool fits your child?

If you have read this far, you already know the rules. The harder part is deciding what your child should actually use, and when. The fastest path I know is working with someone who has taken 200+ kids through it. Book a free Discovery Call: no pitch, just a plan for your situation.

Written by Michael Murr for Kids Coding Tutor: online 1-on-1 coding tutoring for children ages 8 to 16, from Scratch to Python to AI. 20+ years teaching, 200+ kids taught, rated 4.9 out of 5.